Flowers
by BlackRoseDragon13
Summary: InoHina oneshot for PursuedAlive of deviantART. Ino has inherited her mother's love of flowers. Will their beautiful blooms help her find love in an unexpected place? AU, Rated T. This fic contains yuri - don't like, don't read, don't flame. May be continued at a later date


**Hey guys! BlackRoseDragon13 here again. Well, it's been a little while since DI was finished, and I ended up getting a handful of requests to try my hand at! This particular oneshot, however, I've had finished for a few weeks now. It was requested by a good friend of mine on deviantART, so of course I couldn't refuse!**

**This is just a little InoHina AU quick fic, which obviously means that there is a yuri/lesbian pairing. If it's something you don't want to read, please just leave – I don't want to get flames from any homophobes or people who don't like yuri. Otherwise, I hope the rest of you enjoy! It's not ItaHina or SasuHina, but it's one of my favorite yuri pairings ^_^**

**~BlackRoseDragon13**

***Disclaimer* I do not own, nor claim to own, any aspect of Naruto in any way, shape, or form. This is merely a fan work, and I receive no profit.**

_**Flowers**_

With a small groan, Ino Yamanaka sat up in bed, her alarm finally silenced. Blinking blearily, she rubbed one cheek with her hand, sighing. _Well, no use putting it off any longer. Up and at 'em, Ino._ Finished mentally coaching herself, she brought her legs over the side of the bed and stretched her arms up over her head, toes wiggling in search of her slippers, burrowing deep within as they found their mark. She didn't bother grabbing her robe, walking out of her bedroom and into the belly of her apartment in just her pale blue nightgown.

Coffee started brewing as she opened her laptop, checking the news and weather as the black liquid dripped into her favorite coffee mug, her toast slowly browning beside it. _Hm...no new mail. Let's see...Sakura's still on her honeymoon with Naruto, and...Tenten is out of town looking for wedding stuff with her fiance._ Sighing, the blonde shut the portable computer as her toast leapt into the air, coffee maker dinging as the flow of liquid stopped. Glancing at the clock on her stove, she swore. "Shit! I'm gonna be late!"

Pouring her coffee into a travel mug, she wrapped her toast in a paper towel before rushing into her room, pulling on tight faded light-blue jeans, a yellow blouse, and grabbing her purse and a rolled up apron. Snatching her keys and breakfast, she shut and locked her door before racing down the stairs to the bottom floor. Her bike was still parked in the rack, and she fumbled with the lock. "Come on...come on!" As soon as the bipedal vehicle was free, she swung it around to face the right direction, pushing against the peddles and picking up speed, dodging pedestrians as she made her way toward her place of work.

"Oh man...I'm so gonna be late..." Steering with one hand, she tore a chunk of toast from the other, chewing the dry substance as best she could. She didn't have an employer to yell at her for being late, as she owned the business herself, but...being late meant less hours, less hours meant less customers, and less customers meant less money. _Stupid internet, always distracting me..._

The shops along the street of her home town were already open, people bustling to and fro between the doors and beneath the canvas overhangs. It was a beautiful spring day, and the sun was shining without a single cloud in the sky. Perfect for her kind of business.

Stopping sharply before an adorable little shop painted yellow with blue shutters around the windows, Ino hefted her bike into place beside others on the rack, clicking the lock into place and turning to the front door and fumbling with her keys. Eventually she swung it open, a little copper bell dinging as the portal swung forward beneath a sign that read, "Yamanaka Flowers".

At least being family meant being fired wasn't likely.

Unraveling the long green piece of fabric she called an apron, Ino tied it around her back as she went about her morning opening duties. Refrigerated displays of all sorts of flowers in varying arrangements lined the walls, in every color under the sun. There were roses, lilies, orchids, carnations, daisies, and even silk plants for those with bad flora luck. Besides plants for arranging in cut bouquets, there were potted ones to keep for longer times. A person could pick the vase they wanted, in glass, ceramic, clay, wood, plastic, and even crystal. Ribbons for wrapping around said vases were in any width or color. Cards for attaching to the bundles were available as well - anything someone could want for flowers, all in one shop. Behind the front counter was a workbench for cutting, arranging, and even pressing flowers. The scents were thick in the air, an intoxicating aroma that Ino loved dearly. Once everything was in working order, she flipped the sign to say "OPEN", going to work.

Most of the business she did were orders placed over the phone or on paper– weddings, funerals, birthdays, romantic evenings – anything that people would want blooming displays of petals and stems to help celebrate with. Springtime was always good for weddings, and she had three before the end of the month. Funerals made her sad, but helped her put her heart into her work. Birthdays were sporadic, but men who actually remember the dates of their anniversaries made sure to put in orders to get beautiful bouquets to impress their women. Other than that, she got the occasional walk in customer who was allured by the displays in the windows, buying some to freshen up their home or office.

By mid morning she had had several phone orders, jotting down the specifics onto a large pad of paper she kept beside the receiver. Cradling the phone with one hand, she scrawled in flowery (pun intended) handwriting everything the customers wanted.

"So that's one large Sweet Dreams arrangement with red roses, white daisies, yellow chrysanthemums, and white lilies with a backdrop of poms and ferns, with a spiral crystal vase, correct? Excellent, that will be fifty-five ninety-five, and will be ready at noon tomorrow...no, thank you!" Finishing jotting down her latest request, Ino included the man's number and name, circling the price as the bell above her door jingled merrily. Setting the phone back in its cradle, she turned with a smile to her newest customer. "Hello! Welcome to Yamanaka Flowers! Can I help you find anything, Miss?"

Jumping slightly, the woman across the room looked up at the blonde with wide pale eyes, blushing lightly. "Oh! Um...I think I'll just l-look around a bit first...thank you."

Giggling a bit, Ino leaned forward onto the counter. "All right! If you have any questions at all, let me know, and I'll do my best to answer them!"

"Thank you."

Ino kept her gaze on the quiet woman for a moment before turning to her workbench. She had a man coming in at noon to pick up a bouquet, and she needed to get to work. Sliding out from behind the counter, she moved to the proper coolers and gathered what she needed, humming lightly as she went. The other female glanced at her shyly, blushing and stepping out of her way. "Oh, um...excuse me!"

"You're fine! Sorry to get in your way – I just need a few of these..." Fading out, Ino grabbed several powder-blue irises. Taking them back to her station, she began snipping the ends and arranging them in a white ceramic vase, a matching blue ribbon on the side waiting to be fastened around it. Along with the irises were pink and white lilies, white daisies, and small orange carnations.

"Um..."

Turning, Ino saw the other woman standing at the counter, watching her work. "Yes?"

Blushing, the woman twiddled her fingers a bit before saying quietly, "The carnations, um...w-wouldn't, um...wouldn't a soft pink be better?"

Ino blinked. Looking back at what she had so far, she analyzed the colors, judging how they complimented one another. "Hm...you know what? You're right..." Tilting her head, she added, "But the guy who ordered them asked for them specifically..."

"Oh! U-um, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have s-said anything..."

Ino laughed a bit, turning fully to look at the stranger. "No, no, that's fine – you have a good eye, Miss...?"

"Hinata..." the other female replied softly. "Um...thank you. I...I love to press flowers in my spare time. My m-mother always had a large garden, and...taught me to do it."

"Oh yeah? My mother loved flowers too – she opened this shop right out of high school. It was slow going at first, but...she tended it like the blooms she loved so much, and eventually it really blossomed into a good business. She passed it on to me...when she died five years ago."

Hinata flinched, eyes going a bit wide. "Oh, I'm sorry for your l-loss."

"It's all right. I still miss her, but...I know she's watching over me, making the flowers bloom." Smiling a bit sadly, Ino shook her head. "Gosh, I'm sorry...I don't mean to bring you down with my sob story! So, you press flowers...is there anything you wanted to get?"

"Oh! W-well, let me look a bit more, and um...I'll let you know."

"All right! It's nice to meet you Hinata. By the way, I'm Ino."

"It's n-nice to make your acquaintance, Ino."

The blonde continued to work as Hinata browsed the blooms, keeping the oddly-colored carnations in place. She smiled as she considered the other woman's shyness in pointing out the combination's fault. _It wasn't like I was going to bite her head off for giving her opinion...poor girl must really be lacking in conviction and self esteem._

In the end, Hinata gathered several lilac-colored roses, white tulips, deep purple irises, and some ferns as well. Ringing them up, Ino asked, "So, is there a special guy you're going to give these to?"

Coloring a bit, Hinata replied, "Oh, um...n-no. There isn't, um...anyone."

"I see. Well, I'm sure they'll turn out beautifully." Wrapping the fragile plants in tissue paper, Ino handed them over as Hinata exchanged them for the proper cash. "I hope you enjoy them!"

"Thank you! I...I will." Waving with a genuine smile, Hinata left, the bell once again ringing.

Smiling after her, Ino leaned on the counter for a while. _She was cute,_ she thought, grinning. _But...I doubt she swings that way. Too pretty._ Sighing, Ino paused as a man walked in.

"Hi, I'm here for my bouquet."

"Oh! Right away!"

By the time she was slowly peddling home, Ino had allowed herself to give a bit more thought to the dark-haired girl she had met that morning. The blonde had to admit she had herself a little crush. But her hometown was large, and she doubted she'd see her again. _Well, maybe if she wants to do more __flower pressing she'll come back in._ Deciding to hope for that, Ino locked up her bike and went inside, cooking a small dinner, reading a bit of a book and surfing the web before going back to bed.

.oOo.

A couple weeks passed with no sign of the girl, and though Ino still thought of her occasionally, the more time went by, the more her memory of Hinata began to fade. Ino assumed that she had scared the girl off, as she had been quite direct with the shy female, and sighed as she decided to let it go. Spring was slowly giving way to Summer, and wedding season was still in full swing, keeping the blonde busy and easily replacing her thoughts of the dark-haired beauty.

At the peak of the summer, one of Ino's friends Tenten was finally tying the knot with her fiance, a man Ino didn't really know named Neji. She had seen him once or twice, thinking he was too stoic for Tenten's chirpy attitude, but as she had yet to have a real relationship of her own beyond high school, Ino decided she didn't have room to judge. Whatever made her friend happy made her happy.

Of course, the blonde was taking care of the flowers, from the bundles that would be hung at each end of the pews, to the little arrangements atop the tables, and even the bride's bouquet – she had everything floral covered. The colors the couple had chosen were yellow and white, leaving the Yamanaka girl with a wide range of combinations to choose from. As she began working with the rest of the wedding coordinators setting up the decorations, she saw her friend and smiled, rushing over to say hello. For once, her fiance wasn't with her.

"Tenten! Oh my gosh, I can't believe it's your wedding day tomorrow! I'm so excited for you."

The jovial brunette laughed like wind chime, embracing her friend with a blush and smile. "Thanks, Ino...I can't really believe it either! Tomorrow it will finally be official...after so long!"

Doing her best to smile back, Ino giggled. "I know! It's going to be a gorgeous wedding..."

Tenten nodded, but her smile faltered as she caught Ino's moment of weakness. "Hey, you okay? You look a little down. Is everything all right?"

Forcing her smile back on her face, Ino replied, "Oh, yeah! I'm fine!"

"Ino...you know you suck at lying. Tell me what's wrong!"

"It's nothing, Tenten – and I don't want to spoil anything. You're getting married tomorrow! Nothing should be bringing you down."

"But if something is making my friend sad...then I'm sad. Come on, Ino! You know you can tell me anything."

Looking unsure, Ino sighed before spilling. "It's just...Sakura and Naruto got married last fall, and...and now you're getting married too. I just...I guess I feel a little...left out."

Tenten's face fell, and she gave her blonde friend a tight hug. "Oh, Ino...I'm sorry. But I'm sure you're going to find a special girl soon – you just haven't met her yet!"

The dark-haired girl flashed through Ino's mind, but she shook it off. "Yeah, you're right...it just stinks being the only single person I know, you know?"

"Well, Neji has a _huge_ family – I'm sure he's got a lesbian cousin _somewhere_ I can introduce you to tomorrow."

Ino laughed. "All right, it's a deal. Now, I better get back to my job...you aren't paying me to sob all over you."

The pair laughed and parted ways, Ino feeling a tiny bit better. _Tenten has always been so good to me._

.oOo.

The next morning seemed to be upon them in the blink of an eye, and Ino changed into a medium-length light-yellow gown that matched her hair, doing her best to look presentable for her friend's momentous occasion. The flowers had all been put in place, everything looking beautiful to help compliment the bride. Ino felt pride as she saw people admiring the arrangements, smiling a bit to herself. _What do you think, Mother? Are they as pretty as you would have made them? _Taking her seat in a pew, she settled back with a sigh to wait.

"Ino!"

Turning, the blonde smiled as her best friend Sakura took a seat beside her and gave her a bone-breaking hug. "Hey! How are you?"

"Fabulous. Naruto and I just finished looking at several houses in the suburbs yesterday, and I think we might have found the _perfect _one!"

"Really? That's great! I'll have to go see it myself!"

Naruto sat beside his wife as the girls caught up, exchanging small talk and gossip as they waited for the bride to emerge. As Tenten had promised, there were many, many family members of the groom's, and Sakura noticed too.

"Jeez! The Hyuuga must have their own city somewhere – look at them all!"

Ino laughed a bit, but quieted as the famous music began to play. Standing, she and Sakura did their best to get a glimpse at their friend as she was escorted down the aisle by her father.

Her dress was beautiful, the small train held up by a little Hyuuga girl. The brunette offered her friends a little wave and a huge smile as she passed, eyes glittering with happiness.

"She's gorgeous..." Sakura murmured, and Ino nodded in agreement.

After the exchanging of vows and rings, the crowd cheered as the newly-wed couple exchanged a loving kiss. Both smiled widely as they parted, jogging down the aisle as their friends and family hollered behind them. Taking off in a car laced with cans, the couple took off toward the reception hall, the rest of the congregation right behind them.

They had rented out a large building downtown, tables scattered about the edges and a dance floor complete with DJ in the middle. Neji managed to retrieve his new wife's garter, a deep red blush covering his face. Females gathered in a bloodthirsty bunch as Tenten prepared to throw the bouquet Ino had crafted, the blonde deciding to take part. Jostling together with the others, she got ready to throw elbows to claim her prize. But just as Tenten began to count down, Ino glanced to her left and saw a familiar head of hair. Eyes widening, she stared as time seemed to slow down.

But chaos erupted as the flowers flew, dozens of hands reaching. Totally unprepared after the distraction, Ino screamed a bit as she ducked beneath several eager women, opting out to the side. _Where did she go?_

She was pulled away, however, as the couple took the dance floor for the first time. Sitting dazedly on a chair, Ino tried to scour the room for who she had thought she'd seen. But she soon decided it was someone else, having no luck. Passing up several offers to dance once others began taking to the floor, she headed to the bar where she ordered a gin and tonic.

_You're imagining things, Ino. Just let it go._

But before she could do much more than sip her drink, she was discovered by Tenten. Laughing and nearly crashing into her friend, Tenten gazed at her with a look of pure happiness. "Ino! There you are! Come on!" Grabbing the girl''s hand, the brunette began tugging her away.

Yelping, Ino asked, "What are you doing?"

"I told you, I was going to help you find a girl!"

Blushing a bit, Ino dug her heels in and brought herself to a stop. "Wait, you were serious? Tenten, I don't know about this..."

Rolling her eyes, Tenten blew some of her bangs out of her face with a giggle. "Oh come on, Ino...I asked Neji, and it turns out he has a first cousin who's into girls! Just meet her, huh? Please? You never know until you try!"

Ino let out a sigh of defeat. "Oh Tenten...the things you talk me into..."

Squealing happily, Tenten resumed dragging her friend across the floor. "Come on! We gotta go find Neji – he said he'd find the girl."

Finding Neji, however, turned out to be a bit of a wild goose chase. The new bride had yet to relinquish her grip on Ino's hand, and the poor blonde was getting tired of being tugged around. "Tenten, this is -"

"Oh! There he is! Come on."

Looking up at the ceiling and wishing for luck, Ino brought her gaze back down as they came to a stop a few paces from the cousins.

"Here she is, Neji! I think you remember Ino Yamanaka – we've been friends since high school!"

Neji nodded, his usually-stoic face relaxed on his wedding day. "I do. It is nice to see you again, Ino. And I would like to introduce you to my closest cousin, Hinata Hyuuga."

The girls, however, were already staring at one another wide-eyed and gaping slightly. "I...but..." Ino moved to point, but hesitated. Maybe she should just play it cool. "That is...um...nice to meet you, Hinata." Offering a shaky grin, she held out her hand. "As you heard, I'm Ino..."

Hinata, still in a bit of a daze, jolted as he cousin elbowed her gently. "O-oh! M-my apologies...it's, um...nice to m-meet you, Ino. I'm...Hinata." They shook hands, still looking a bit awkward.

They continued to stare at one another, still amazed at what they were seeing. Tenten and Neji, however, merely took it as a good sign. Beaming, Tenten said, "Well, we'll leave you two alone so you can get to know one another! Bye!" Disappearing with her husband, the brunette offered her friend one last wink before vanishing into the crowd.

A long, awkward silence was born.

"Well this is...weird," Ino offered.

"Y-yeah..."

Snorting lightly, Ino grinned. "Sorry. I don't meant to come off as rude or anything. It's just...what are the odds, you know?"

Hinata, feeling the tension break, giggled. "I know! It's...very strange. But I'm, um...glad to s-see you again." Blushing, she averted her gaze as she added, "I loved the flowers..."

"Oh! Good! I'm...glad to hear that." Offering the shyer girl a smile, she noted gently, "I had thought that...you might have come back for more, if you'd liked them."

Flinching, Hinata replied, "I, I w-wanted to! I, um...I just..." Poking her forefingers together, she hesitated before adding quietly, "I had, um...been really nervous. Because...I thought you were...b-beautiful...and I d-didn't know what to say if I went back."

"Really? Oh, good!" As Hinata gave her a questioning look, the blonde laughed and added, "I mean...I had thought I'd done something wrong! I'll admit, I had thought you were pretty cute, but...when you didn't come back, I took it to mean that you didn't want to."

"I'm sorry..."

"It's not something to be sorry for. I guess things were meant to work out, though – we're here now, aren't we?"

Blushing, Hinata replied softly, "Yes, we are..."

"So...do you want to dance?"

Looking a bit surprised, the other girl asked, "You...you really want to?"

"I do!" Smiling widely, Ino offered a hand. "I'll have to dance the guy part, though...it's all I know."

Laughing at the blonde's enthusiasm, Hinata nodded, accepting the offered hand. "All right then!"

Taking her partner out onto the dance floor, Ino ignored the few stares they got as they settled into the proper stance. Heart fluttering, Ino let her memory of dancing take over, leading the smaller female across the floor.

She still couldn't believe her luck. It seemed the Fates had decided to smile on her. And Ino wasn't the type to ignore even a subtle sign.

"So...would you like to come back to the shop sometime? I'd love to see what you do with pressing flowers, and I can teach you some arranging, if you want!"

"R-really? Um...s-sure! I'd love that."

"Okay! How about Friday? I close early, so you could come in after hours and we can just chat and see what we can come up with."

"That...sounds like fun."

Twirling, Ino smiled. She wasn't sure what she was doing, but she was sure she wanted to give whatever it was a chance. Pulling the dark-haired woman up from a dip, she planted a soft kiss upon her lips. _Well...at least we have flowers in common!_

_Fin_

**Okay! That's it! I hope you guys liked it – it's pretty cliché, but I thought it was pretty cute X3 Besides, sometimes you just need a little fluff, ne?**

**There is a SMALL chance I may add to this fic in the future, but it's not on the top of my priority list. I've got my other requests, as well as a possible longer fic to get done as well. But, you never know!**

**Also I'm still up for taking requests if anyone is interested. But, as I've said before, please respect my right to say no – it IS, after all, a REQUEST. If it's a pairing I can't write, or I don't have time/motivation, I'm not going to force myself to write anything. Otherwise I'd love to work with you guys on something! I currently have three others in the works, and I want to finish things in order to keep things fair, so also bear that in mind.**

**I hope you guys enjoyed! If you have a moment, please take one to leave a review – either just a quick note, or a critique if you're really motivated – I love hearing from you guys ^_^ Until next time, my lovelies!**

**~BlackRoseDragon13**


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